August 21, 2009

UBS-IRS Bargain Noted by Committee Leadership

Two members of the Senate Finance Committee have commented on the agreement announcedby the Justice Department between UBS AG and the Internal Revenue Service on account information. Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., calledit “an important step in the fight against offshore tax fraud.” On the other hand, Ranking Member Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, saidhe needed more information before he would be willing to support the arrangement. Grassley questioned how the IRS reduced from 52,000 to 4,450 the number of accounts for which it wanted information and also called for more information on the use of financial institutions in countries other than Switzerland to avoid taxes.